The Community Research Te Auaha Pito Mata Awards are held to celebrate the impact of emerging researchers whose work uplifts communities, strengthens knowledge, and creates positive change in Aotearoa.
This webinar series introduces the 2026 Award winners and offers an opportunity to hear directly from these inspiring researchers as they share their work, insights, and aspirations for the future.
In this webinar, we meet Paula Ormsby, winner of the Billie Award, and learn about her outstanding contribution as a community researcher to ‘Tīhei Wāhine Ora: Wāhine from Gang Whānau Healing Intergenerational Trauma’. As Rangatira of Wāhine Toa, Paula’s longstanding relationships of trust helped connect participants with the researcher, while her leadership provided strength, guidance and community oversight throughout the project.
We will also be joined by esteemed researcher Paora Moyle, who conducted the Tīhei Wāhine Ora research. Paora brings 30 years’ social work experience and extensive Hauraki-based research into family violence, housing poverty, agency harm, disaster response, and abusive child-protection processes.
The webinar will be facilitated by Kaye Maree Dunn.
About the research:
Tīhei Wāhine Ora: Wāhine from Gang Whānau Healing Intergenerational Trauma, is a Health Research Council-funded research project conducted by Paora Moyle, with Paula Ormsby providing community leadership and oversight throughout the project.
Comments from our judges:
Through longstanding relationships of trust and accountability with wāhine from gang whānau, Paula provided community leadership and governance that strengthened the research from its development through to completion.
The judges particularly noted the research’s uncompromising rejection of deficit framing, positioning wāhine as knowledge holders and lived experience as expertise.
